Gone Wired Cafe

I don’t remember how I found Gone Wired Cafe’s website, but I’m glad I did. Usually, when I’m looking for new places to eat, I turn to the web. A good website and, more importantly, a menu on-line usually is what gets me to a place.

I picked my girlfriend up from work one night for a quick dinner. We drove right by the place looking for a parking spot. There’s a city lot behind the building and there’s also on street parking up front. We couldn’t find a place in the city lot, but found one right in front of the building.

When you walk in, you walk into a huge open space. There’s a little comic book shop to the left as well as desktop computers you can rent for $1 for 15 minutes. To the right, the first dining area sits in front of the counter. A huge chalkboard above the counter displays the menu which ranges from breakfast favorites to pizza to burgers. You order at the counter and they give you one of those electronic buzzer things you usually get handed at chain restaurants to let you know when your table is ready. Once the buzzer activates, you go to a window near the kitchen and pick up your own food. They just put the plates up for you to take back. There are trays underneath the window and you have to go somewhere else to pick up your silverware. The main dining area is on an upstairs balcony that is lined on either side with booths. There are also a couple corner booths that they just put out into the middle of the room. It’s actually a really cool look. Back downstairs, there’s a kids area where the kids can play while mom and dad get some work done or enjoy a meal. There’s one more area downstairs that’s kind of a circle booth. I’m pretty sure some college kids were hooked to each other playing games at this table.

I have no idea why, but I ordered the Black and Bleu burger without thinking that I had burgers for lunch. Being in a cafe, I should have gotten something a little healthier, but the Black and Bleu burgers always shout my name anymore. The burger came with a choice of side. The menu board and the printed menu said they had fries, but when I asked for fries, the girl behind the counter said they don’t do fries anymore. That was a little disappointing, but it did force me to eat healthier. I got a side salad with Italian dressing. The sandwich came piled with bleu cheese. Man, was it good. I’ve come to love the tanginess of the bleu cheese with hamburger meat. The salad was just iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, onions, and croutons. It wasn’t a whole lot, but a good compliment to the burger.

My girlfriend got the Waldorff salad. Her plate was stacked with greens, strawberries, walnuts, and bleu cheese. On the side, there were three little cheese quesadillas. Like me, she loves how bleu cheese works with other ingredients. In this case, it was the cheese and the strawberries. She polished off all the toppings and the three quesadillas, but had some salad left on her plate when we finished.

Both of us got Coke’s for dinner, but on the way out, she stopped and got an iced latte to go. Gone Wired is an incredibly unique cafe. Most cafes have realized they are not going to make money on coffee alone due to that big chain that has brainwashed consumers into thinking they have to pay $10 for a cup of coffee. Gone Wired has gone a little farther than most cafes and have offered a unique, interesting menu in a really cozy environment. On a Thursday night, most of the tables were full with a pretty good mix of people. There were college students studying for finals. College professors grading papers. Young adults playing video games and guys checking their Facebook pages. Gone Wired is one of those unique finds where atmosphere plays a big part in the overall experience of the place.